Production of textile yarns



Patented June 10, 1941 PRODUCTION OF TEXTILE YARNS John Brandwood,Birkdale, Southport, England No Drawing.

rial No. 316,273. M, 1938 1 Claim.

The present invention relates to textile yarns Application January 29,1940, Se-

InGreat Britain December produced with discontinuous fibres, for example7 fibres of wool and cotton, such yarns having no spinning twist, and isdirected to the provision of a form of such yam which will be soft andlustrous and will serve for the preparation of fabrics therewith whichfabrics are to display a soft and lustrous quality. Such yarns may forexample be used in the preparation of flannelette, the softness of sucha fabric lending itself excellently to the performance of the napraising step employed in such preparation.

Various propositions have been put forward for the treatment of fibresof various kinds with adhesives so that the said fibres would adheretogether as a result of adhesive left on and between the fibres. In oneproposed method a textile roving was delivered from delivery rollers anda size solution rubbed into it as it passed from such rollers. Thiswould be useless however where a soft and lustrous yarn is required,inasmuch as size, or any other adhesive left upon the fibres, forms partof the yarn as a whole and has a hardening or stifi'ening effect uponthe said yarn as such.

To attain the soft and lustrous condition there should be nothingseparating the individual fibres in the finished yarn, but, at the sametime, the yarn should be-of sufficient tensile strength to wind andweave satisfactorily, as a yarn.

The present invention has for object the production of a textile yarnwhich will meetthese latter mentioned requirements, and according tosuch invention a textile roving or slubbing, as prepared in a. speedframe preparatory to usual spinning, is treated with a very weaksolution of a substance having adhesive qualities, and then excess ofthe solution is cleared to the greatest possible extent from thefibres-upon which it has been deposited. The strength of the solution isso selected that whilst after it has been removed are practicallyspeaking in a state of parallelism; will be fully appreciated by thoseskilled in the art, and in many other uses the softness and lustre ofthe yarns, as against spun yarns, is of advantage. 1

The roving or slubbing may be treated in any manner, but preferably, andpractically, by the method set forth and claimed in the specification ofBritish Letters Patent No. 482,817 granted to me. In that specificationa liquid is forced by differential pressure through a roving or slubhingin the wound condition as it comes from the speed or fiyer frame, andthe excess of liquid is cleared from the fibres by means of compressedair. The use of a dye or analogous liquor is however contemplated, 'inthat specification. Any solution or dispersion may be employed for thepurpose of this my present invention which will give the desired effectof frictional resistance between fibres, and as examples of materialsfrom which solutions or dispersions can be prepared may be mentionedrubber latex, cellulose derivatives, gellatose, a soluble starch, andgums of various kinds. These whilst not being adhesives, have adhesivequalities suflicient for my purpose viz: to promote a frictionalresistance between the fibres without actual fixation of the sametogether. For instance a dispersion of a rubber latex of any of thekinds commercially obtainable may be employed, the solid rubbercontentof the same being reduced to as little as onehalf to one per centby dilution in known manner. In employing the other materials men--tioned, the method of preparation of solutions of the same is well knownin each case, and the strength of such solutions may be one-half to oneper cent, that is to say suificient to ensure that the desired degree ofincreased frictional resistance is obtained, without positive adhesionof the fibres, but suilicient to impart a strength to the produced yarnto enable it to withstand winding and weaving tension. The soft andlofty character of the yarns is thus ensured, which would not be. thecase if the fibres wer so treated as to adhere firmly together.

An important advantage of the invention is that where the ultimatelyproduced yarn is required in dyed condition, the solutions abovereferred to can be added to the dyebath. The method of dyeing being mostpractically that described in the specification of British LettersPatent No. 482,817 earlier referred to. Due regard being had to theweight of the batch of rovings or slubbings being dyed, the volume ofsolution employed, based on the strength of the same as earlier stated,can be accurately calculated. Yarn is thus produced and dyed as a singlestep. If it is for any reason, for example, the nature of the dyebath,though undesirable to add a solution to the latter, it may be added tothe subsequent wash water.

Throughout this specification the basis of the yarn produced is referredto as a roving or slubbing. It is preferred however to take a roving asthe basis, such roving having the regulation turns per inch of itslength-the carrier twist.

I claim:

The method of forming a textile yarn of a soft and lustrous characterfrom discontinuous fibers, which resides in treating a textile roving orslubbing with a dye bath containing a very weak solution of a substancehaving adhesive qualities to an extent sufiicient to impart increasedfrictional resistance only to separation of the component fibers whendried, but insuficient to efiect fixed adhesion of such fibers, finallyremoving any excess of the solution, and subsequently drying, wherebythe production of the yarn and the dyeing of same is efiected in asingle operation.

JOEE? BRANDWOOD.

